By Liam Price
Excitement is well and truly building ahead of the Dabbers’ FA Cup trip to the Leasing.com Stadium to face Macclesfield FC on Saturday (3pm kick-off).
Macc to the Future
Football fans in Cheshire don’t need much reminding of Macclesfield’s recent turbulent history, especially off the pitch. On the pitch, from the North West Counties Premier they have picked up 3 promotions in 4 seasons to reach the National League North.
Macc supporters were hurt when Robbie Savage decided to leave for Forest Green after overseeing all that success and seemingly being committed to the club. John Rooney took over as manager in the summer, having played for the club in both their current and previous guises. It’ll be a young touchline on Saturday, with Rooney 34 and Jon Moran 28.
Taking his first step into management and it being in a new league for all at the club is no mean feat, and so far it seems to be going relatively well. They are 10th in NLN on 12 points, 3 off the playoffs. It’s all very even in the stats: 3 wins, 3 draws and 3 defeats, with 13 goals scored and 13 conceded.
In just league games it has been 1 win in the last 6, that came against Darlington. They lost 3-2 last weekend away at Chorley to a 95th minute goal but were denied a goal from a backpass by the referee that looked to all the world a very wrong decision.
In the FA Cup, they have only played 1 game to the Dabbers’ 4 to this point, a 3-0 win over Atherton Labernum Rovers of the North West Counties Premier 2 weeks ago, also at home.
Last Time We Met
Our last meeting of any description was a pre-season friendly in 2016, which Macclesfield Town as they then were won 3-0 at the Swansway Stadium.
With thanks to Retro Dabbers, though, there is FA Cup history between the two sides. Nantwich Town have played Macclesfield Town 3 times before in the Cup, all at Moss Rose. The most recent was all the way back in 1931, with Macc winning 2-0. Back then, King George V was the monarch, Ramsay MacDonald won the UK general election to remain as Prime Minister, and construction was finished on the Empire State Building in New York.
The biggest ever game between the two sides, by attendance at least, came a year earlier in the 1930 Cheshire Senior Cup final. Held at Crewe Alex’s Gresty Road, Macclesfield won a 9-goal thriller 5-4 in front of a crowd of 14,647, which is still the record crowd for a game Nantwich have been involved in. This incredible colourised photo shows the game, where you can even see fans perched on top of one of the stands! Thanks again to Retro Dabbers for this insight.
Players to Watch
There are some familiar names in Macc’s squad who have faced us before and deservedly climbed up the pyramid. Isaac Buckley-Ricketts once scored both goals in a Warrington Town win over the Dabbers in 2022, for example, and has 2 goals to his name this season.
Luke Matheson once scored for Rochdale at Old Trafford in the EFL Cup at just 16 years old, and joined Macc in the summer.
Their top scorer is Danny Elliott with 5. Last season he scored an astonishing 41 goals in all competitions and won the Northern Premier League Golden Boot.
Match Information
Tickets are still available at just £10 for adults. Macclesfield have advised that tickets should be bought in advance as only a very limited number will be available on the gate on the day. Buy your tickets HERE. At time of writing over 280 have been sold so don’t miss out!
Coach tickets from the Swansway Stadium are also sill available. They are £15 each, the coach will depart at midday on Saturday, and you can buy yours HERE.
Our three blocks are in the stand that has many names: the Moss Lane Stand, the McAlpine Stand or the Besseges Stand. Whatever name you call it, the blocks will be on the far left as you approach it.